The AbilityNet’s Tech4Good awards were held this month, the UK’s only award ceremony celebrating entrepreneurs and businesses innovating technology for the greater good of society.
Gadgets
VIP: Keeping it Clean
In this week’s VIP, Nelson and James discuss the top stories on Cool Blind Tech. They also delve into the subject of housekeeping.
GlovEye Brings Braille to Your Finger Tip.
At this year’s Microsoft Imagine Cup, a team from Hungary developed a glove that has a refreshable braille cell built into the index finger of the glove. The GlovEye works with an app on your smart phone. Just point the phone’s camera at some text, and braille will appear on the glove.
Smart Cane Uses Image Recognition and Voice Feedback to Provide a More Accurate Description.
At this year’s Microsoft Imagine Cup, Team Titamas from Japan designed a smart cane that is different from the ultrasonic and laser canes that we have seen in the past. The team recognized that it is important that a blind person not only know that there is an object in their path, but also what the object is, where it is, and does it pose a danger to the user.
The Walky uses image recognition to identify the object in real time. It then uses directional voice feedback to communicate that information to the user.
Fanmail: August 2, 2017
The CBT Team dedicates this show to our listeners because we know that you are responsible for our success. Keep sending us your emails and messages from social media and we will read or play your feedback on our show.
A Device to Test Infants’ Vision is Now Possible
An advanced device to measure the field of vision of infants has been developed by scientists at L.V. Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad. The device, named paediatric perimeter, can be used to test the eyesight of infants between two and 12 months.
Amazon’s Alexa May Be Your Next Teacher
On July 27, Canvas by Instructure announced that its teaming up with Amazon Alexa to help students, teachers, advisors, and parents ask questions, carry out quick tasks, and get information from Canvas on Alexa-enabled devices. The new feature was announced by InstructureCon and marks an ongoing effort scale up Canvas’s voice-activated applications.
Amazon Echo Can Now Notify You When Your Package Ships
You’re probably aware of Alexa’s ability to let you know when you receive calls and messages on your Amazon Echo. Amazon has recently decided to expand Alexa’s capabilities to notify you when your order has shipped. Before, you were only able to ask your echo for the status of your order.
Apple’s HomePod Comes with VoiceOver.
A recent firmware update to Apple’s HomePod shows that accessibility support has been added to the operating system, and that includes VoiceOver. The device is voice activated, but it does have a touch surface that allows the user to long press Siri and adjust the volume. With VoiceOver included, this touch surface will be accessible to the visually impaired.
For now, the device does not support third parties or extensions, but that could change before the release of the HomePod in December.
Source.
The Sunu Band Helps the Blind Navigate with Sonar and Haptic Feedback.
The Sunu band is a smart watch that is specifically designed to help the blind navigate around people and objects. It sends out ultrasonic waves up to 13FT away, and then provides haptic feedback to make blind people aware of objects and people. The range and feedback are fully customizable by way of an app. The Sunu Band can be paired to your phone by Bluetooth. It also detects openings such as doorways and threshold’s, but it doesn’t seem to be able to detect drop offs.
You can purchase the Sunu Band here for $299.
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